


Gravity

by TheAvengerFairy



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Timelines, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternative Timeline, Canon Divergence - The Dragon Prince, Different Ocean Elves, F/M, No Ruthari Hate Intended, Not Tidebound Elves, Platonic Ruthari, Post-Season/Series 02, Pre-Season/Series 03, Ship your Ship, ocean elves - Freeform, world building, world expansion
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-03
Updated: 2020-09-04
Packaged: 2021-02-27 16:22:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 21,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22069978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheAvengerFairy/pseuds/TheAvengerFairy
Summary: How much trouble can some humans, some elves, a merman, a baby dragon, and a very grumpy glow toad possibly get into? A lot, apparently.///Side note: This story is not meant as an attack on any other ships, canon or otherwise. You have a right to ship what you like, as do I.///
Relationships: Callum/Rayla (The Dragon Prince), Runaan (The Dragon Prince) & Original Female Character(s), Runaan (The Dragon Prince)/OC, Runaan (The Dragon Prince)/Original Character, Runaan (The Dragon Prince)/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! Thank you for giving this story a chance! As stated in the tags, this story is in no way meant as an attack on Ruthari or any other Runaan ships. Also, feel free to translate Runaan's orientation for this story in such a way that suits your morals and/or worldview. Lastly, all I ask is that you be kind to one another. Enjoy!
> 
> -Lilah

Opeli just had to pick _him_. Given the nosedive that his luck had been taking as of late, Marcos shouldn't have been surprised when the aforementioned advisor of Katolis' High Council chose him out of all the other competent souls in the Royal Guard to go seize from Viren's former study any magical objects that could prove potential dangerous to the kingdom, a category to which the mage's entire collection more or less belonged to, and dispose of them, but as the soldier drove along the bumpy, winding trail through the woods that enclosed the castle, his internal organs continued to twist themselves into a knot so complex it would have baffled even the most proficient pretzel chefs in all of Katolis.

 _"You need to relax, Marcos."_ he tried to reassure himself as he gripped the reigns of the two slow but stocky Clydesdale mares pulling his cart so tightly that his knuckles were turning the color of alabaster, the tightness in his chest leaving him feeling somewhat winded since he couldn't draw in a deep, solid breath of crisp air. _"Viren is locked up tight in the dungeon, and without him, none of these items can hurt you....probably."_

Glancing back at the bed of the wagon behind him, he half expected to find that one of Viren's trinkets had managed to wiggle its way out from underneath the large tarp that he had secured over his load and snuck up behind him, ready to pounce, but he found nothing out of the ordinary. Maybe he was just being paranoid. Maybe this was just going to be another ordinary assignment where nothing went wrong.

Then the horses gave a frightened shriek, and Marcos' voice along with two others screeched out an equally shrill reply as the guard yanked sharply on the reins, bringing the cart to so abrupt of a stop that he nearly went tumbling from his seat onto the two mares' backs.

"Benny! Jaime!"

Once he had managed to settle down the startled horses with a few gentle pats and soft shushes, Marcos shifted his attention in the direction from which the other voices had come only for his heart to drop like a stone in his stomach when he saw two identical little boys sprawled in the dirt in front of him, their caramel-colored eyes brimming with tears behind their slightly long, unkempt hair as one caressed his left shoulder and the other clutched his right arm tightly to his chest. Hearing the rapid thumping of running feet and heavy panting, the soldier's hand instinctively flew to grasp hold of the hilt of his sheathed sword only to fall back his side when a slightly older youth, likely the two boys' brother given his similar hair color and skin tone, broke out of the brush and dropped into a slide, throwing his arms around the two kids as soon as they were within reach.

"This is why I told you two not to play near the road! You need to be more careful!" he scolded them, his voice reprimanding but gentle as he drew the twins to him.

"W-We're sorry, Luka!" they blubbered in reply, clinging to him tightly as he helped them to their feet.

"Don't be upset with them. I should've been watching where I was going." Marcos exclaimed as he leaped down onto the forest floor and made his way towards the huddle of siblings only to stop when the older boy, Luka, shot him a warning glare. "They're not hurt, are they?"

"They're just a little bruised, lucky for you!" Luka snapped sourly as he positioned himself protectively in front of his brothers, his leery eyes flitting back and forth between Marcos and the two horses, who had begun to munch innocently on some tufts of grass that had shot up in the middle of the road. "You should keep those beasts under better control before they actually harm someone!"

Marcos blinked slowly once, twice, three times before quickly throwing his fist over his mouth to try and suppress the surprised chuckle, causing Luka's scowl to deepen.

"You think this is funny?! You royal guards really are just a bunch of insensitive, pompous boneheads, aren't you?!"

"No, no! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to laugh. It's just that Momo and Bae-Bae here are the most docile horses out of the entire royal stable; they wouldn't hurt a fly. Your brothers just startled them is all." Marcos hurriedly apologized. Noticing the skepticism still painted on Luka's face along with the fear radiating off of Benny and Jaime, who peered at him nervously from behind their brother, he removed one of his armored gloves and stooped down along the side of the road, plucking a handful of the dandelions growing there, "Here, I'll show you."

Though still somewhat scared, Jaime and Benny leaned out a little bit farther from their hiding spot and watched with interest as Marcos held the flowers out to the two mares. Lured by the sweet aroma, the two horses raised their heads and tenderly nibbled on the treat until there was nothing left, followed by gently licked the soldier's open palm to make sure they got every trace of the taste.

"See? Nothing to be afraid of."

"Uh huh. Whatever you say. Come on you two, we better get home." Luka griped rather loudly as he grabbed his brothers' hands and started pulling them in the direction from which he had come.

Marcos' brow creased with concern. "Are you sure you boys are okay? Why don't you let me escort you home? It's not safe for a bunch of kids to be wandering alone in the woods."

"We're fine. Besides, I'm sure whatever royal mission you're on is much more important than us." Luka crowed back before disappearing into the foliage with his brothers, the leaves and branches concealing them so well that the only evidence left of their presence was a steadily fading rustle as they left Marcos alone without another word.

"O-Okay! Just be careful!" he called after them, though he figured the effort was likely futile. Heaving a heavy sigh, he started to climb back into the driver's seat of the wagon only to halt when a potent uneasiness washed over him. Biting the inside of his cheek, he swiveled his head to look scrutinizingly back at his cartload of magical knickknacks, but once again nothing appeared to be out of place.

 _"You're being paranoid again, Marcos! You'll never make a good guard if you don't stop being such a scaredy cat!"_ his conscience squawked irritably, its voice sounding oddly similar to that of his disapproving Aunt Cadence who had always insisted on him becoming a healer like his uncle. The likeness made him shudder and he hastily spurred the two mares forward before his mind had any more reason to scold him, ignoring as best to could the nagging dread that continued to construct a bird's nest for itself out of his stomach and intestines.

Luka's eyes did not leave Marcos until he and his cart were no more than a speck in the distance, and as he dropped down from his hiding spot in the large oak tree that overlooked the road, his lips twisted into a wicked sneer.

"All clear!" he shouted.

Immediately, Benny and Jaime darted out of the bush at the base of the tree and scrambled to their brother's side, eyes gleaming with excitement as each boy nudged the another aside so that he was the center of Luka's attention.

"How did we do, big brother? Huh, huh? Were we good?" Benny chattered eagerly, his words all tumbling together into one giant, incoherent heap as they flew from his lips at inhuman speeds.

"Well, the two of you smearing your snot on my shirt wasn't really necessary, but other than that, you devils weren't bad." Luka clucked smugly, lovingly ruffling the boys' hair before resting his hands on his hips and leisurely throwing back his head. "What a dolt! That was almost too easy!"

"Too easy?! If it was so easy, you should've been able to keep him occupied for longer!"

Luka's smirk wavered slightly as his eyes flitted over to the raven-haired girl emerging from another one of the nearby bushes, meticulously plucking twigs and brambles out of her two stubby braids and brushing the dirt off of her skinned knees and elbows, but but it soon returned when he caught a glimpse of the sack dragging in the dirt behind her.

"Maybe you should've just worked faster, Lennie." he taunted her in the way all brothers do, snatching the bag out of her hand and surveying what was inside. "Still, it looks like you managed to scrounge together a decent haul....."

His voice trailed off as he stared into the sack, disbelief and disgust distorting his imp-like face to such a degree that the twins' couldn't help but grow curious and try to catch a glimpse of their sister's gains as well.

"What the heck is this? What garbage did you grab, Lennie?" Luka sputtered, his lips puckering and nose wrinkling as though the articles in the bag were actually emitting so horrid order that only he could smell.

"It was all garbage, Luka; that guy had nothing on him but junk! You picked a dud target!" Lennie trilled defensively.

"Okay, maybe I did, but you're the one who still snitched some of this rubbish!"

"Well we can't exactly go home empty handed! I grabbed whatever I thought looked restorable!"

"Restorable? We're thieves, not artisans, Lennie! These scraps are useless to us!"

Benny shot Jaime a perplexed look, "What's an artisan?"

Jaime shrugged his shoulders, "Beats me. Hey Luka, can Benny and I at least look and see if Lennie grabbed anything that we might want to use for our fort?"

"Psh, knock yourselves out. Go ahead and pitch whatever is left over, but don't throw away the sack this time, alright?" Luka grumbled before tossing the stolen scraps at the twins' feet and resuming his argument with his sister.

Benny and Jaime pounced on the bag faster than a pair of famished dogs, nearly ripping in two in their haste to flip it over and empty its contents onto the ground. To anyone who did not know their magical value, most of these items did indeed appear to be no more than worthless trinkets, but two innovative, imaginative mind of a child, even a bag of trash can prove to be a treasure trove.

"Jaime, look at this! It looks like a finger!"

"Why would there be a finger in a jar?"

"Because it's cool!"

"Hey, this looks like one of those rune stones from the book we snitched from the old librarian!"

"No way! That's totally fake!"

"Well so is your finger!"

"Is not! Hey, look at this-"

And so the boys continued to examine and sort each object as Luka and Lennie bickered, completely oblivious to their younger siblings' enterprises as they hurled petty jabs and insults at each other much like kids themselves, and aside from the occasional squabble over an item's identity or sorting, little trouble arose between the twins until they both grabbed hold of the last item, a small purse made of stormy gray cloth.

"Hey, hands off! I touched it first!"

"No way! You got to hold the last one!"

Clenching their tiny jaws in determination, the brothers pulled on their side of the purse, straining against one another till the bag finally tore in half and a flash of gold caught their eyes.

"Benny, Lennie actually got money!"

"Shh! Don't shout it!"

"But-"

"Shh!"

Glancing back at the two older children to ensure that they hadn't heard Jaime's outburst, Benny hurriedly began stuffing the handful of coins into the pockets of his pants, much to the astonishment of his lookalike.

"What are you doing?"

"Lennie and Luka always get all the credit even though we do all the hard work, but if _we_ give these coins to Papa..."

Jaime's eyes brightened when he caught his brother's implication and his plump, youthful lips curved into a broad smile. "Let me hold onto some! Let me hold onto some!"

"Alright! Alright! Keep your voice down!"

After checking again to ensure that Lennie and Luka were still fully engaged in their spat, Benny quickly handed Jaime two of the four coins in his pocket only for the latter to suddenly scream and drop one of them, startling his brother in the process and thus rousing a squeal from him as well. Ironically, it was this unified exclamation that finally earned the attention of the other siblings.

"What the heck are you two squawking about?! Are you trying to get somebody's attention?!" Luka barked.

"S-Something moved!"

"What?! Where?!"

"O-On the coin!"

"Coin? You guys found coins?!"

"What were you saying about my haul being nothing but garbage?" Lennie quipped smugly before strutting over to the twins and plucking the discard coin off of the ground, "You probably just saw your reflection, you big baby-"

Her words were cut off by a surprised gasp as she too dropped the coin, though she hastily snatched it up again before it could hit the forest floor. Bringing it close to face, she stared at the glistening surface in disbelief, unable to believe her eyes.

"Oi, could you all stop screaming?! I'm starting to go deaf here!" Luka lamented, but his remark flew right over Lennie's head.

"...Luka, you know anything about coins with moving pictures on 'em?"

Brow furrowing skeptically, Luka strolled up alongside his sister and leaned over her shoulder, but all suspicion left him when he saw firsthand the blinking eyes, silently babbling lips, and flailing fists of what appeared to be an elf rippling along the surface of the coin.

"...I've never seen anything like this in my life...." he drawled, his jaw agape with disbelief. However, after a moment, a mischievous glint ignited in his eyes. "I bet Pops hasn't either! He's gonna love this!"

Lennie barely had time to comprehend what was happening before Luka suddenly ripped the coin from her hands and took off in a sprint, leaving her frozen in a state of shock until her mind finally caught up and she darted after him with an angry screech.

"Luka, come back here! That was my find! I'm giving it to Papa!"

In the blink of an eye, they both were gone, and Benny and Jaime simply stared at one another in silence for a moment as they too tried to process all that had happened. Lifting up his right hand, which still held the other coin, Jaime slowly opened his fist and stared down at the golden piece.

"Does that one have-"

"Uh huh. Do yours?"

Checking his pockets, Benny nodded mutely, and slowly, the two boys started to smile. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the next chapter! Enjoy! 
> 
> To make things interesting, I may start including fun facts/headcanons about characters in the notes section of each chapter, so stay on the lookout for those!

Callum had been right. Rayla would never tell him that, but he had been right. Apparently one does not simply walk into Xadia, at least not near the part of the border where Sol Regem dwelled in order to guard the Moonstone Path. Stupid dragons; they thought of everything.

Despite the abundance of monstrous oaks and pines guarding the private alcove she had discovered about an hour before, a cool breeze still managed to caress her skin and ruffle her hair as she sat cross-legged amongst the untamed grass, absentmindedly flicking one of her swords open and closed over and over again as she struggled to produce a feasible solution to her current predicament. Aside from the Moonstone Path, all other ground entrances into Xadia would be heavily guarded on both sides of the border, and crossing over by sea was not an option for more reasons than just her personal phobia. Yep, they were definitely stuck.

" _Runaan would know what to do. He always knew what to do."_

Rayla's heart clenched painfully in her chest, rousing her guilt from its sound hibernation and sending it scrambling back to its good work of turning her stomach into a hot, nauseous whirlpool. Runaan. Sure, his name had briefly passed through her mind on occasion over the past few weeks, but she had never actually taken a moment to pause and truly think about him ever since her mission to return the Dragon Prince and hopefully stop the war between humans and Xadians began. What had happened to her mentor and the rest of their party that night? Yes, she had seen his shadowhawk arrow sailing through the air and one of her wrist bindings had fallen off, indicating that the king had been successfully assassinated, but that only told her so much. Were they alright? Had they been captured? Had they perished as well?

" _You let him live but you've killed us all!"_

Rayla sharply shook her head to clear away those jarring words. They had to be okay. It didn't matter if it was impossible; Runaan wouldn't have let anything happen to them. They were probably on their way back to Xadia right now.

" _And they are all probably permanently disabled because of you."_

No, she couldn't think about that. Optimism may seem just as trivial as fear to her, but at the moment it was all she had. Besides, she didn't have time to dwindle on her comrades' fates; she had her own mission to focus on, which brought her back to her original dilemma. How in the name of Thunder was she going to get her, Callum, and Zym into Xadia undetected?

A wistful sigh escaped Rayla's lips as she returned her blades to her belt and rested her cheek in the palm of her hand while absently staring at the patch of dirt and grass directly in front of her, "I know you would probably still be mad at me, but I really wish you were here, Runaan. I'm out of my element and out of ideas, and the pressure of knowing that I'm in charge of protecting and delivering the one thing that could potentially end the war between humans and Xadia ain't exactly helping me get a creative spark. You would be way more qualified for something like this, and yet this responsibility fell to me....I just don't know how I'm gonna do this...."

"Gah! Rayla!"

Rayla nearly jumped out of her skin and instinctively went for her knives before quickly stopping when she remembered who that voice belonged to.

"Ugh, don't startle me like that! I just about attacked you!" she snapped angrily at Callum, though she was surprised and secretly somewhat impressed that he had managed to sneak up on her without the brush giving him away.

"Well, thank you for not attacking me," Callum answered rather awkwardly, his posture unusually rigid as he anxiously scratched the back of his neck, "So, who were you talking to?"

Hot embarrassment rushed into Rayla's cheeks, dyeing her fair skin the color of ripe moonberries, and she instinctively averted her eyes from Callum as if that would somehow hide her shame.

"Nobody," she mumbled, "I was just thinking out loud is all."

Callum's brow crinkled with concern, his hand falling back to his side as he took a few steps towards her, "Are you okay? You seem upset."

"I'm fine. I'm just...irritated because I can't think of any other way to get us into Xadia."

"Hey, don't be so hard on yourself; I know you'll figure something out." Callum purred gently as he deposited himself down beside her and comfortingly grasped her shoulder, his mouth curving upwards in an encouraging grin. However, Rayla's grim expression did not change.

"I wish Runaan were here," she sighed again.

"Runaan? Wait, he was the archer you fought with on the castle wall, right? Is he your brother or something?"

Rayla's face contorted into a look of pure offense. "What? No! How old do you think I am?!"

A larger-than-average bead of sweat slithered down Callum temple, "I'm not going to answer that. Who is he though? You two seemed like you knew each other a little better than just fellow assassins."

"Runaan is my mentor. He taught me everything I know."

"Oh."

Rayla sighed again. "He should be the one leading you into Xadia not me. He has way more experience and training and knowledge than I do, and yet, you got stuck with me instead."

"Well, I'm glad to have gotten stuck with you, Rayla," Callum retorted gently before quickly adding, "and not just because your mentor probably would've killed me by now and taken Zym back to Xadia by himself."

The quiet, undignified snort that echoed from Rayla as her mouth curved into a smirk made Callum's chest swell with a little pride and brought a smile to his face.

"Thanks," she answered, her posture relaxing slightly. However, her muscles went stiff again only a moment later and her eyes grew wider than full moons as she stared at Callum like she had never seen him before, "Wait, Callum, what are you doing here?! Why aren't you watching Zym?!"

Callum's skin turned paler than porcelain as he nervously wrung his hands, his eyes darting to look at anything and everything in the clearing other than Rayla, "Heh, funny you should mention that...."

All of the previous delight and warmth had now vanished from Rayla's face, and in its place lurked an icy shadow that sent shivers down Callum's spine.

"Callum, what's going on?"

"Well, you see...."

"I can't believe you lost the future King of the Dragons! What were you thinking?!"

"He seemed bored, and I remembered Ezran saying he really liked hide and seek!"

"And you thought that was a good idea for a game?! You know, there's this thing inside your head called a brain; you should try using it."

"...You're really mean sometimes, you know that? Besides, it's not like babysitting a dragon is easy!"

"Ezran managed to do it!"

"Well, that's because he had his special gift! I don't speak animal!" Callum grumbled before quickly ducking to avoid being hit in the face by a branch.

The temptation to continue to berate Callum was strong, but after rolling of her eyes in annoyance, Rayla managed to swallow the urge and instead focus her attention on the task at hand, "Just keep looking. He had to have left some kind of trail."

"Unless he flew..." Callum began to argue but his voice broke off when he noticed Rayla glaring at him, "Sorry."

Clenching her jaw, Rayla pushed past a cluster of brush and entered another clearing, and to her frustration, there was still no sign of the baby dragon.

"If you know any kind up special, Sky magic tracking spell, now would be a great time to whip it out," she grunted as she brought her fingers to massage the bridge of her nose in an effort to fend off her impending headache.

One of Callum's eyebrows rose in a skeptical arch, "Was that supposed to be sarcasm or a genuine suggestion? I couldn't really tell."

Exasperation was his answer as Rayla flung her arms up in defeat.

"Who are we kidding? We're screwed!" she cried dramatically as her hands fell back to her sides, her shoulders slumping forward as though heavy weights had been tied to her wrists, "There's no way we're going to find one tiny dragon in this massive forest-"

An ear-piercing screech drowned out of the last of Rayla's words and sent her and Callum both springing into the air. Immediately, their eyes snapped to look at one another, their faces both conveying the exact same fear, and so much as a single second of further hesitation, they darted in the direction from which the voice had come. They ran as fast as they could, Rayla easily taking the lead ahead of Callum as he struggled to keep up, but with every step they took, the forest seemed to throw some stumbling block into their path, whether it be a fallen tree, a gnarled tangle of roots, or a tightly woven thicket of thorns, to slow them down. Still, they pressed onwards, barely aware the sting of branches slapping their arms and faces or the ache of their feet as they stumbled on the uneven forest floor as they raced at a pace that never dipped below a steady sprint. Each of them silently hoped that their shared hunch was wrong but knew full well that the likelihood of such a blessing was slim, and as they rounded a sharp outcropping of rock, the gurgling of water tickling their ears, their hearts and stomachs somersaulted over one another as their eyes beheld exactly what they had feared.

Several yards ahead of them sat a human girl who looked as though she was probably a few years older than Ezran, the sunlight catching on her fiery twin braids as she tranquility lounged with her legs dangling in the cool water of a lazy, crystal clear stream, entirely oblivious of the little imp of a dragon slowly creeping up on her through the grass, tail flicking slowly back and forth as he hunkered down and prepared to pounce. The air caught in Rayla's and Callum's throats as they silently pleaded that Zym would miraculously decide to back down and scamper off before he was noticed, but with a final cocky trill, the baby dragon flung himself into the air and hurdled towards the human.

Rayla nearly screamed, not because of Zym but rather what happened next. When the baby dragon was a mere arm's length arm, the human girl suddenly whipped around and caught him with a speed and ease that startled Callum and Rayla both as they watched, their stomachs sinking further into the sandy pit of horror that had manifested inside each of them. A wicked grin stretched across the redhead's face as she raised Zym high above her head, the dragon squirming and squeaking in protest while his wide, innocent eyes peered down at her. A disorienting lightness filled Rayla's head, leading her to grab onto Callum's scarf to steady herself as she struggled not to faint, and Callum consequently reached out to steady her partially out of concern and partially to stop her from choking him.

"This is bad. This is really, really bad," Rayla moaned woefully.

"Hey, we can't automatically jump to the worst conclusion." Callum peered scrutinizingly at the girl before continued, "She doesn't look scared. Maybe she thinks Zym is just a giant lizard."

"Callum, he has wings! What other reptile do you know of that has wings?!"

"...Yeah, you're right. This is bad."

The ginger had since lowered Zym down to where he was now eye to eye with her, and after an uncomfortable period of silence that left Rayla's skin crawling, the baby dragon gave a giddy chirp and began to playfully lick the girl's freckled cheeks, causing her to giggle.

"You're going to have to do better than that if you want to sneak up on me." she taunted buoyantly, her warm chocolate eyes gleaming as her nose brushed lightly against Zym's, "You're much too noisy and your static made the hairs on my neck and arms stand straight up as soon as you got close. You definitely need to work on that."

Zym merely sang another adorable coo and then resumed licking her face, the girl hardly even flinching as energy sparkled across his tongue and zapped her skin, not that the shocks were even remotely painful to begin with. The tension released from Callum's shoulders as her laughter danced in his ears, but Rayla remained completely rigid, her eyes fixed on the girl in a cold, merciless stare.

"She seems pretty nice. Maybe she won't give us any trouble." the former remarked optimistically, much to the aghast of the latter.

"How could you possibly know whether or not she's nice just by looking at her, Callum?! Didn't Lujanne lecture you that moon magic revolves around the difference between perception and reality?! For all we know, that seemingly innocent human girl could be the acolyte of a dark mage who is merely keeping Zym occupied while she awaits her master's return."

"Or, she could really be just a normal human girl with no dark motives or ill intentions. You can't always just assume the worst about people, Rayla."

"You can't afford to always think the best of them either, especially not in a war."

"Well, what do you suggest we do then? She's already seen Zym; there's not much we can do about that."

Rayla's expression darkened, "We've only got a few options, and you're not going to like any of them."

"Why would you tell me that?! I mean, if you already know I won't like them in the first place then what is the point of telling me about the options at all-Rayla?"

Callum's throat tightened when he realized his friend was no longer beside him. Normally, he found her stealth and skill admirable and rather fascinating, but at the moment, he was more irked and frightened by it.

"Rayla? Rayla?! Rayla!"

"Stay where you are!"

Callum immediately froze where he stood before slowly sneaking a glance over his shoulder to see the redheaded girl standing behind him, her once gleeful face now warped into a suspicious scowl as she pointed her hand at him. At first, the prince was confused, but he soon noticed with a sinking feeling that the girl had some kind of contraption strapped to her wrist. The device closely resembled the crossbows he had seen used by many of the palace guards but on a much smaller scale, and one sweeping, inquisitive glance indicated to him that it was likely rigged to fire when girl clenched her hand into a fist. Okay, maybe Rayla had been right about the girl not being as innocent and sweet as she seemed.

Swallowing thickly to clear away the glow toad-sized lump in his throat, Callum timidly twirled around to face the ginger, hands raised high in the air, and offered her a nervous smile, "Uh, hi?"

At the sound of Callum's voice, Zym's head perked up, and with a happy trill, he popped out from behind the girl and scampered toward the prince, his little mouth stretched into as wide of a grin as he could manage while his tongue stuck goofily out to one side. Momentarily forgetting his terror, Callum dropped down onto his knees and seized Zym into a tight hug as soon as he was within reach, remaining completely oblivious to the incredulous look the redhead was giving him as he cradled the dragonling close.

"Zym! You scared me! No more hide and seek for you, you hear? From now on, we're only playing games that include my eyes being on you at all times!"

The baby dragon whimpered in protest, his head drooping guiltily between his shoulders, but after a moment, he yipped softly in what one could assume was understanding and snuggled himself deeper into Callum's embrace.

"So he isn't alone out here. I guess that should be a relief."

Callum's heart staggered in its beat for a moment, sending a cold shock along every nerve in his body. He had nearly forgotten that he and Zym had an audience.

"Y-Yep, the little goofball is with me! I turned my back on him for a second and he decided to go and explore. T-Thank you for looking after him, Miss....?"

"Madeleine," The girl answered, a small smile forming on her lips as she lowered her weapon. However, her eyes did not lose their inquisitive sparkle, and the look made Callum's insides churn.

"Well, thanks again, but we really should be going now-"

"You haven't told me your name though."

"Oh....uh....it's Callum."

"Callum," the girl purred, testing the way the name rolled on her tongue, "That isn't a very common name, is it?"

"Uh, I guess?"

"I like it. So Callum, what's a baby dragon doing on this side of the border?"

Although the question was asked in the most innocent of tones, it sent the prince's mind scrambling in a wild panic, and before he could regain enough sense to stop himself, he blurted out what possibly had to be one of the stupidest and most unconvincing lies he had ever told.

"Dragon? You mean Zym? Pfft, Zym isn't a dragon!"

"He isn't?"

"No!"

"Oh....what is he then?"

" _Well that totally just backfired."_ the prince mentally chastised himself, " _Come on, Callum! Think!"_

"He's uh....a draconis....imitatius!"

Madeleine's brow scrunched into a row of wrinkles, "A what?"

"A draconis imitatius! They're called draconims for short!"

"I've never heard of them."

"They're really rare and most people confuse them for dragonlings like you did, so they aren't very well known."

"I guess that makes sense...."

"It totally makes sense!"

"What's the difference between a draconim and an actual dragon, though?"

By now, a thick coating of sweat had totally soaked the hairs on the back of Callum's neck. "You ask of a lot of questions, don't you?"

The girl's cheeks ignited in a rosy blush that rivaled the radiance of her hair, sparking instant regret in Callum that he yearned to snuff out by doing some kind self-inflicted sacrament like slapping himself across the face.

"Sorry, I can get a little nosy sometimes. I should really learn when to shut my mouth."

"No no, it's okay! It's totally normal to be curious about something rare and unique. You didn't do anything wrong!" Callum hurriedly tried to reassure her.

"You look kind of uncomfortable though."

"I do? I guess I'm still coming off the adrenaline rush Zym gave me. I'm so glad he's alright."

"Ah, got it. So back to my original question, what makes a draconim different from a dragon."

"Well...they stay small like this and....they can't actually fly even though they have wings."

"Really?"

"Y-Yep. Kinda sad, isn't it? He has those big wings and he can't even use them..."

It was at that moment that the largest butterfly Callum had ever seen just had to flit past, catching not only his eye but the eye of Zym as well. With an excited shriek, he unfurled his wings and soared after it with a mighty flap, missing it by mere centimeters before sailing back down to the ground with surprising grace. Madeleine's jaw fell agape while Callum's throat swelled shut.

"Did he just-?"

"T-That wasn't flying! That was...gliding! There's a big difference."

Callum could practically see the gears turning in Madeleine's head as she stared scrutinizingly at Zym, but before she could say another word, a dark shadow suddenly passed over them. A collective shriek of surprise from Callum, Zym, and Madeleine cut across the clearing as Rayla appeared seemingly out of thin air and tackled the girl to the ground, her blades already scraping against the skin of Madeleine's throat as she pinned her arms down with her knees.

"Rayla, what are you doing?! Where did you even go?!" Callum exclaimed in horror, his eyes bouncing frantically back and forth between the obviously irritated elf and the frightened human innocent underneath her.

"I was trying to find a good angle from which I could catch her by surprise and knock her out, but then just had to get in the way!" Rayla spat back sourly, "And as if our situation wasn't already bad enough, you just had to go and make it worse with your babbling! Why couldn't you just keep your mouth shut?!"

"I was nervous and you had totally disappeared! What was I supposed to do?! Knock her out with a wind spell?!"

"Yes! That's exactly what you should have done!"

"Well, why didn't you jump in earlier and stop me?!"

"Then the other human would've known I was here!"

"You...You're a Moonshadow elf..." Madeleine muttered in disbelief.

"Well, she knows now!" Callum griped, "What do we do-No wait, you said I wouldn't like the options!"

"Callum, would you quit being so dramatic for a second!"

"I'm not being dramatic; I'm panicking! There's a very big difference! What do we do?!"

"Could you please just shut up for a second so I can think?!"

"Madeleine!"

The new voice caught both Rayla and Callum by surprise, but before they could scan for the one to whom it belonged, a ear-piercing, bloodcurdling scream tore through the air and ripped into their heads, threatening to tear their minds into unsalvageable shreds.


	3. Chapter 3

Rayla's head would've hurt less if it were being split open. Never had she heard such a grating, mind-rattling sound as this one, and it continued to claw and scrape at her head in the form of phantasmic echoes long after the source had finally gone silent. Battling against the painful pulsing that pounded against her skull, she tried to reign in her scattered thoughts and grab her blades, which she had unwittingly dropped, but just as her fumbling hands found their hilts in the grass beside her, a blow from behind sent her tumbling forward onto her stomach..

"Madeleine, run!"

"But-!"

"I said run!"

Flipping onto her back with a grunt, Rayla staggered to her feet and lunged in the direction of her attacker's voice, swinging blindly with her blades and hoping she would get lucky. Although the first swipe missed its mark completely, one of the swords managed to snag on her opponent's cloak the second time around and thus gave away her exact position to the still partially blind elf, who pounced on her without a second of hesitation. Grabbing Rayla's wrists before she could bludgeon her with her weapons, her adversary slipped her legs beneath her opponent as soon as her back hit the ground and catapulted the elf over her head, sending her hurtling towards the creek's edge.

"Callum, a wind rune or a lightning spell would be very helpful right about now!" Rayla snapped when she picked herself back up after landing with a painful thud, being extra careful not to slip on the slick mud of the bank.

Callum gave no answer, and after staring at his still slightly blurry form long enough for her eyes to adjust, she noticed his skin had turned an alabaster-like shade that definitely was not natural for humans.

"Callum!"

"B-Ba-Banshee!"

"What-?"

A strike to sternum cut Rayla off and sent her plunging into the creek with a graceless flail and a mighty splash. The water wasn't very deep but she still managed to inhale a less than healthy amount of it before she had floundered her way back to the surface and latched onto the shore with an Achillean grip, leaving her disoriented and vulnerable as she hacked and wheezed for air. When a shadow passed over her, she squinted to look at the cloaked figure that loomed in front of her, her hood completely obscuring her face except for her scowling mouth.

"You disgust me. Have you no sense of shame or fear?!" she snarled, venom practically dripping in thick droplets from her lips. Crouching down in the grass and mud, she gripped Rayla's chin tightly in one hand while the other scrubbed harshly at the deep purple markings beneath her eyes. "How sick can you be to dress up as an elf to commit your crimes so they will be blamed for your treachery-"

The woman's voice suddenly faltered, and her mouth soon fell agape as she stared first at her pristinely clean hand followed by Rayla's unaltered markings.

"They're real...You're real..."

"Yep, and this is _really_ going to hurt."

A surprised yelp sprang from the woman's lips as Rayla rammed her forehead against her nose as hard as she could, sending her scrambling back as her hands flew to her face. Not wasting a second, the Moonshadow elf dragged herself up and barreled towards her disoriented opponent, blades raised and ready to deliver a debilitating blow, but just as she was about to swing, a white and light blue blur darted directly in front of her, forcing her to skid to a halt in order to avoid slamming into it and tripping.

"Zym, get out of the way!" Rayla snapped irritably, but the baby dragon didn't budge, his usually wide, innocent eyes now alight with a defiant spark. Grumbling to herself, she tried to step around him, but Zym merely ran back in front of her again, this time giving a shrill yip of protest as he locked gazes with her.

"Ugh, what has gotten into you?! Callum, snap out of whatever daze you're in and come help me!"

Rapidly fluttering his eyelashes while simultaneously shaking his head seemed to be the magic combo for breaking whatever spell had rendered Callum totally paralyzed, but he took little more than three timid steps forward before immediately freezing up again, his attention flitting back and forth between Zym and the hooded figure a mere foot behind him.

"Zym, come here now." he demanded in as stern of a voice as he could muster with his trembling lips. Unfortunately for him, he didn't come across as very intimidating and Zym didn't seem bothered by him in the slightest.

Rayla rolled her eyes. "Callum, just grab him!"

"But the banshee is right there! What if she grabs me?!"

"Okay, what in the name of Thunder is a banshee and why are you so scared of it?! I'm literally standing right here ready to slice it into fleshy ribbons if it moves!"

"Okay, first off, thank you so much for putting that image in my head so it now can and will surely haunt me in my nightmares. Second, banshees are spirits, Rayla! It's gonna take more than a couple of swords to kill it!"

"She felt pretty solid to me."

"Geez, is bickering all you two do? Then again, I guess I can't complain since your arguing gave me enough time to finish assembling my little friend!"

All heads snapped in the direction from which Madeleine's voice had come until every eye found the redhead lurking beneath the shade of a cluster of weeping willow trees, a peculiar device perched atop a leather glove on her outstretched arm. It resembled a crossbow like the ones Rayla had observed several of the palace guards wielding on a much smaller scale and with an additional, lever-like piece that rested against her fingers, and though the girl tried to carry herself with confidence, the elf could read the faint lines of trepidation in her face. Whatever that device was, she was just as wary of it as the rest of them.

"Put down the swords and step away from them or I will shoot."

"Go ahead. Take a shot and see what happens." Rayla barked back, the balls of her feet grinding in the dirt as she hunched down and prepared to sprint.

A ripple of shock as well as possible fright momentarily muddled Madeleine's determined expression, but her trembling legs remained planted where they were and her face quickly rehardened, her teeth sinking into her lower lip as she met Rayla's glare while her fingers twitched in anticipation mere millimeters above the crossbow's trigger. Tension left the air in the clearing buzzing hotly and a confrontation seemed imminent until the banshee's cool voice sliced clean through the heat.

"Everyone just stop! I believe there's been a huge misunderstanding here! Madeleine, put down that hazard of a contraption before you hurt yourself again or somebody else!"

"But-"

"Now!"

An angry huff puffed from Madeleine's scowling lips but she did not argue further. While her eyes remained fixated on Callum and Rayla, the latter in particular, she tentatively slipped off the glove and deposited on the ground by her feet with the utmost delicacy to avoid accidentally setting it off. However, that wasn't good enough for Rayla.

"back away from it."

Madeleine's face flashed angry red, but at a nod from the hooded woman, she reluctantly obeyed and shuffled away from her invention until there was at least a yard's distance between them. "There, ya happy?"

Rayla ignored the redhead's sass completely as she stared down her attacker, her blades still tightly clenched in her hands, "You attacked me; what is there to misunderstand about that?"

"Well, we actually kind of attacked them first..." Callum interrupted only for his tongue to magically transform into a rock when Rayla swivelled her scalding gaze onto him, and the nervous grin he offered her didn't win over.

"Both of us misinterpreted each other's actions. I thought you were planning to harm Madeleine in order to take the prince for your own malicious aims-"

"Well, you weren't completely wrong."

"-but now I realize that we are on the same side."

Rayla scoffed so loudly she startled a pair of unwitting birds that had made the mistake of coming of perch on the limbs of a nearby sapling only a moment before, "You seriously expect me to believe anything you say after you almost drowned me and your little friend threatened to shoot us?! Ha! Give me one good reason why I should listen to you, oh terrible phantom!"

The woman went very quiet for a moment before raising her head just enough for Rayla to catch of glimpse of a pair of vibrant violet irises that shone like polished gemstones beneath the shadow of her hood. "Don't skewer me."

"No promises."

Moving slowly as to not accidentally provoke an attack, the woman grabbed the brim of her hood and pulled it back, allowing lengthy ringlets of fluffy, somewhat messy, snow white curls to spill down to her thighs as the sun kissed the lightly tanned skin of her face. Starting just below her bottom lip, a line of dark blue dots stretched down to the bottom of her chin, each marking slightly smaller than the one before it, and from within her cloud-like mane, out poked a pair of rounded and stubby, light blueish gray horns as well as two pointed ears rimmed by shimmering fins that were also a fair shade of blue. Removing her gloves next, the girl held up a hand in plain view, wiggling her four fingers so the light danced on the translucent webbing between them.

"This a good enough reason for you?" she muttered, her flat tone making hard to decipher whether she was being sarcastic or deliberate.

Rayla didn't answer. In fact, aside from her eyes that skimmed over the other elf from head to toe, she didn't even move. Callum, however, was an entirely different story.

"You...You're an elf! You're another elf!" His shoulders shook with his nervous laughter before he breathed a long sigh of relief. "Oh thank goodness! I thought we were in serious trouble for a second there."

"She could be a fake."

"Huh?"

"She just accused me of disguising myself as an elf. We can't just assume she's the real thing because she looks the part," Rayla repeated bluntly, but even as she said those words, she subconsciously lowered her swords to rest idly at her sides.

The she elf's head tilted slightly to one side and a coy smile stretched across her lips. "You really think an ordinary human could mimic the wail of an Oceancry elf that perfectly, Moondrop?"

"It's Rayla, not Moondrop."

"Anora."

"I wasn't asking. What are you doing wandering around on this side of the border and with a human no less?!"

"I could ask you the same thing, although I think I already have a pretty good idea of what's your story is." Without the threat of being flayed by Rayla's blades to keep her down, Anora gracefully picked herself up off of the ground and brushed away the dirt that clung to her legs before casually scooping Zym into her arms. When she gently scratched at the nape of his neck, the dragonling trilled happily and went limp in her embrace, his complete vulnerability a testament of his trust which only brightened her smile. "I'll tell you whatever you wish to know, but first we should move somewhere more secluded to ensure the prince's safety. That okay with you, Moondrop?"

"Fine." Instinct and years of training both reeled in Rayla's head, aghast that she would agree to something so foolish, but Rayla was far too focused on Anora to pay them much mind. Despite the fact that the other elf easily towered at least a head over her, she still tried to appear intimidating by puffing herself up to her full height and keeping their gazes locked together. "But if you do anything even slightly fishy, I promise that nobody will ever find your body once I'm done with it."

Anora merely snorted in amusement. "You Moonshadow elves truly are excessively paranoid."

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing. There's a hidden glade with a pond and waterfall nearby that we can go to, and if you weary travellers are hungry, Maddie and I would be more than happy to catch a few more fish and treat you to some lunch."

Madeleine groaned, "We would?"

"Yes, we would."

"That would be great!" Callum's eyes sparkled brighter than they had all day at the mention of food, but the gleam flickered slightly when he noticed Rayla's disapproving scowl in the corner of his eye. "What?"

"You're unbearably naive." she grumbled sourly with an exaggerated roll of her eyes before begrudgingly trailing after Anora, leaving Callum to stare at the back of her head, utterly perplexed, as he wondered what exactly he had done wrong this time.

\-------------------------------

The glade was surprisingly beautiful. The water of the pond shone like cerulean tinted glass, clear enough for onlookers to see all the way to its bottom where the smartest fish wedged themselves amongst the stones and leafy freshwater plants, while carpets of long, impossibly green grass dotted with colorful bursts of neon flowers danced along its outskirts. The only noise that could be heard was the trickling of the waterfall as it splashed down from the rocky, moss-covered cliff that was just off center in the little alcove accompanied by the occasional whistle of the wind or twitter of nearby birds, creating a peaceful symphony that sank beneath the skin and soothed the soul as the network of large trees along the border of the glade wove their branches together to seal the little pocket of beauty safely away from the rest of the world. Rayla never would have guessed that such a beautiful spot could exist outside of Xadia in the land of mankind.

Of course, the moment quickly became a lot less serene when a flying fish unexpectedly nailed her on the cheek.

"Sorry, Rayla!"

Zym immediately dove for the still flopping fresh catch as it landed in Rayla's lap, gobbling it down whole in the blink of an eye. Wiping fishy residue from her face, Rayla shot a scowl at Madeleine and Callum, who both sat hunched by the water's edge fussing over a catapult-like contraption that the former had ingeniously assembled in a matter of minutes out of a pile of spare parts, fishing net, and things she had gathered from their surroundings. "Why do you have to make a device to catch the fish for you? Just do it yourself!"

"What's the fun in that?" Madeleine chirped in a rather smug retort, a choice she immediately regretted when she observed Rayla's eyes shift from mildly icy to unforgivingly frigid. "M-Maybe we can move a little further away so you're not in the direct line of fire."

"I would do that." Anora called from where she was squatted across from Rayla, prodding at the kindling of the campfire crackling between them with a long stick before feeding it another generous handful of twigs and leaves to help it grow. When she noticed the dragonling go scampering in the direction of the water, she added, "Make sure Zym isn't eating your catch as fast as you can bring it in."

Rayla didn't take her eyes off of Madeleine or her contraption until both had moved at least two yards down the shoreline, which may have been rather excessive to say the least but she wanted to be absolutely certain that she was out of range before she let her guard drop. Anora, however, misread her body language to mean something else entirely

"They're oddly intriguing to watch, aren't they? With such ingenuity, they hardly need magic." she purred, hints of awe and pride coloring her voice.

"That's one way to look at it," Rayla scoffed, sarcasm dripping from her lips in thick droplets as she finally turned her back to the waterfront and swiveled her attention onto the dancing flames before her, "So let me make sure I've got everything straight. Your parents were the guardians of the half of the Ocean Nexus bay that resides in the human world, but you haven't seen them since an attack separated you?"

"Correct."

"And the reason you're travelling with a human-"

"Maddie."

"-is because her open-minded parents took you in and hid you after you rescued her from an undercurrent, but you two got split up from them when the townsfolk where they lived found out your secret and chased all of you out?"

"You're good so far."

"Huh, you have worse luck than I do," Rayla mumbled before her common sense could kick in and stop her, but judging by the giggle that rang from her lips like the chiming of a cluster of small silver bells, Anora found the observation equally amusing. "I guess what I don't understand is why you went to save Maddie in the first place. I mean, I had a reason for teaming up with Callum, but you just acted without one. She's a human and you're an elf; why didn't you run the other way as soon as you saw her?"

A gust stole through the glade, tousling the grass and shaking the branches of the trees as though the forest itself was laughing at such a question. Anora, however, simply continued to smile as she set aside her stick, satisfied for now with the fire's current state, and reclined back into a more comfortable position as the light from the flames danced in her deep eyes.

"I suppose it's simply a part of my nature."

Rayla could sense what was coming. "Ugh, you're about to get all philosophical with me, aren't you?"

"Only if you don't mind."

The Moonshadow elf shrugged her shoulders in weary resignation. "Just get it over with."

"Do you know anything about the Ocean arcanum?"

"Not really. Water isn't exactly my thing."

"Well, what do see when you look at a body of water?"

"My worst nightmare."

Anora's composure rippled for a moment as she strived to suppress the giggle swelling in the back of her throat like a wave, but it spilled out anyways in the form of a rather crude snort. "Beyond that. What do you _perceive_ when you look at the water, like this pond for example?"

Yep, this was getting more and more like Rayla's talks with Lujanne and Villads every second. Allowing her eyes to drift to the pool, she hardly thought at all and blurted whatever came to her mind, "Well, it's kinda still and calm, I guess?"

"And yet, despite appearing that way on the surface, down below it is brimming with life and activity."

"Yeah, I'm still not getting it."

"Those of us with Ocean arcanums have a special understanding of the relationship between perception and reality, much like those with Moon arcanums like yourself. However, while the Moon arcanum focuses on perception, the Ocean arcanum puts more emphasis on reality. While we may be limited to our perception of something, that doesn't change the reality of it. At one moment, the ocean may be calm and inviting, and in the next it can become stormy and dangerous. Everything and everyone contains unknown potential beneath the surface, and we can allow that capacity to fill us with either a fear that holds us captive or a hope that makes us brave."

"So basically what you are telling me is that my hatred for water actually stems from the fact that the magic of the Ocean pretty much directly contrasts that of the Moon?"

This time, both girls busted out in laughter, catching both Callum and Madeleine offguard and enabling Zym to wriggle free from the former's arms and scarf down with unrivaled speed the small pile of fish that had accumulated next to the latter.

"I don't know. Anything is possible after all," Anora purred while flashing Rayla an impish wink. "Anything else I can clear up for you?"

"Actually, there is one more thing: what in the world is this banshee nonsense that Callum was babbling about or are you as clueless about it as I am?"

"Um, for the record, it is not nonsense. Banshees are very real and very dangerous!"

Rayla shot a sour glance over her shoulder. "I thought you were busy fishing."

Callum's nose wrinkled at Rayla's snide remark as he eased himself down beside her, Zym once again wrapped snugly in his arms, and the girls quickly caught a whiff of the pungent stench of raw fish tainting the dragonling's breath. "We decided Zym needed to be kept away from the water if we ever want to eat. You seriously don't know what a banshee is though?"

"No! For the last time, I've never heard of a freaking banshee in my life!"

"Banshees are creatures of human myth, not Xadian."

Rayla's lips twisted into a sly smirk that she made certain Callum noticed. "Myth, as in not real?"

"Oh, we're very real, Rayla. The details of our legends amongst the humans are just a little...embellished."

Once again, Callum's skin whitened to that same corpse-like color he had adopted when they first encountered Anora, and though he didn't consciously realize it, he scooted a little closer to Rayla. "Wait, you mean you're really..."

"A banshee? Yes and no."

Groaning, Rayla lowered her face into her open palm, her fingertips gently massaging her forehead as it began to ache. "Great, now my head is really starting to spin."

"The banshees of human folklore are a complete hoax, but they did originate from something real. Any guesses as to what or who might've served as inspiration?"

When all the pieces clicked together in her head, Rayla's cheeks flushed pink at her own stupidity. "Oceancry elves! Of course!"

"Correct, namely the Oceancry elves that have served as the guardians of the Ocean Nexus or the shores of Xadia. It was pure coincidence that a few deaths occurred after someone witnessed us scream, but rather than fight the folktale, we decided to use it to our advantage."

Callum's brows drew together in sheer confusion, "Wait, can only female Oceancry elves scream like that?"

"No, both women and men alike can screech like that, though the pitches might be different."

"Then how come banshees are always said to be female?"

A devilish sparkle going the flames dancing in Anora's eyes. "Have you seen any male elves, Callum? It isn't exacted a hard mistake to make."

Rayla's hand flew to her mouth to muffle her giggling; she imagined Runaan wouldn't have taken too kindly to such a remark. Fortunately, the scratching of scales on scales and the thump of Madeleine's nets hitting the ground drowned her out.

"Okay, I caught 'em; somebody else can cook 'em." Madeleine grunted as she flopped down between Callum and Anora. "Also, I was thinking about your little dilemma, and I think I've got a solution. If you guys can't get to Xadia by land, why not go by sea?"

The giddy warmth in Rayla's chest immediately evaporated, and she must've gasped because all eyes were suddenly on her. Her entire body had gone numb and dead aside from her racing heart, which beat against her ribs in panicked protest. She couldn't speak, couldn't find the words.

"Not an option. We have to find another way." Callum insisted, grabbing Rayla's hand and giving it a tight squeeze while Zym nuzzled her shoulder with his nose. These things should have brought Rayla comfort, but instead a painful heaviness began to well in her chest.

"No. We can't waste time looking for an opening along the border. If the sea is our best option, then we'll go by sea."

"But Rayla-"

Rayla offered Callum a weary smile and clenched his hand in return. "It's alright, Callum. I'll manage."

"If you plan to go by water, crossing over the Ocean Nexus would be your best bet." Anora offered, lowering her eyes before the others could notice the sadness lurking in their corners, "I could take you there but the journey will take a few days at the very least. We'll need to gather some supplies before we depart to limit the amount of stops we have to make along the way-"

"Are you sure you want to go back there?" Rayla frowned, not needing to see Anora's inner struggle to know that it was there.

Slowly, Anora allowed her eyes to drift from Rayla to Callum and finally to Zym. "If it means returning the Dragon Prince home and hopefully stopping the coming war, absolutely."


	4. Chapter 4

"My King! King Ezran, wake up!"

"Mmm, five more minutes...."

Never before had Corvus defied an order, especially the order of a king regardless of whether or not he was half asleep upon its issue, but after a nanosecond of hesitation, he shook Ezran a little more forcefully while leaning a little closer to the boy's ear. "King Ezran, you need to wake up!"

"Alright, I'm up. I'm up." Groaning, the young king sluggishly dragged himself up into a sit and rubbed his eyes to clear away the lingering heaviness of sleep in his eyelids. As the world came into focus before him, he was puzzled to find Corvus kneeling in front of him, his usually impassive demeanor now riddled with anxiety that reached out to snag hold of him as well, and his bewilderment only grew when he noticed the darkness looming around them. "Corvus, what time is it? Bait, a little light please?"

No answer. Not even a grumpy grunt.

"Bait?"

Ezran's heart began to pound against his ribs as his eyes scanned his surroundings, a small, rather humid cave that was really more of a pocket in a wall of rock, but no matter where he looked, he could not find a yellow lump dotted with blue patches tucked away even in the darkest crevice of the den.

"My King-"

"Corvus, where's Bait?! Where are we?!"

Corvus's head dropped shamefully down between his shoulders, his eyes fixated on the stone floor because he could not bring himself to look Ezran in the face. "I...I do not know. I recall filling the canteens back up at the stream along the edge of our campsite while you slept, but after that...nothing."

"We need to find Bait and get out of here." By this point, Ezran was on his feet, his hands cupping around his lips to amplify his voice as he began calling out the glowtoad's name, "Bait! Bait, where are you-"

Faster than an archer's arrow, Corvus clamped a hand over the young king's mouth and yanked him to his chest, his eyes darting wildly about. "Lower your voice, my king! Whatever enemy brought us here might hear you!"

As if on cue, a sultry yet eerie chuckle shook the walls of the cavern, and Corvus grip on Ezran tightened till it was almost painful while his head snapped to look behind them at what the young king assumed was the cave's entrance.

"Well, well, look who finally decided to wake up."

Despite Corvus's best efforts to shield Ezran from the view of whoever or whatever was addressing them, the latter managed to wriggle loose from the hold of the former and peeked out his head just enough to catch a glimpse of their captor. Given the number of unusual characters that had entered into his life in the past few weeks, he shouldn't have been surprised to see that their newest foe was hardly human, but his youthful wonder remained undaunted despite the current situation. Below the man's waist where his legs should've been, a mighty cerulean tail instead swished lazily back and forth, its scales glittered likes hundreds of polished sapphires even in the dim lighting. His golden eyes and the golden jewelry hanging from his ears, wrists, and neck glowed equally as bright against the contrast of his caramel skin and midnight black hair that momentarily floated around his head like it had a mind of its own before settling against his chiseled shoulders and collarbone. He should have been utterly mesmerising, but the sinister smile that stretched across his face broke the enchantment of his physique with the revelation that his beauty was merely skin deep.

"Hmm, I was expecting a bit more awestruck of a reaction with a healthy dose of terror, but I suppose moderately stupefied will do." the merman purred coyly as he flashed the boy a smug side-eye.

His instincts whispered for him to be afraid and to recede back into the shadows once more, but instead, when Corvus reached out to push Ezran back behind him, the young king swatted his hand away and marched a few steps closer to the cave's entrance, chin raised and shoulders squared in brazen defiance. Never, not even in his final hours, had his father cowered before an enemy, and neither would he.

"Who are you? Why did you bring us here? Where is Bait?"

"Oh good, you've got some fight in you after all. I was worried about things becoming mundane." the merman sneered with perverse delight as though Ezran were merely some animal that had just performed a trick for him, "However, I'll be the one asking the questions here, your majesty."

"I'm not saying anything until you give back Bait!"

"Oh? Is that so? You think you are in a position to make such a demand?" With a single flick of his tail fin, the merman was a mere inch away from the mouth of the crevice, startling Ezran into stumbling back a few steps while Corvus lunged to insert himself between the two of them. However, with a rumbling chuckle that rang off the walls of the tiny cavern, he gracefully glided back again, his grin now stretching from ear to ear. "Normally, I would have just killed your for such defiance, but I find your naivety rather...entertaining."

With another swish of his tail, the merman was gone, the cloud of bubbles left in his wake serving as the only proof that he had been there a moment before. Unfortunately, the brief period of peace lasted a little over two seconds before he reappeared, a squirming blob of blue and yellow with a glowing rune on its underside held out as far away from him as he could reach.

"Here's your fish bait, though I don't think you catch anything impressive with it. This one seems to have gone sour, and we sea-dwellers are more finicky about flavor than you would think."

"Bait!" Without thinking, Ezran immediately lunged to grab the glowtoad, but Corvus again blocked his path.

"No, my king! Let me get him."

Mild annoyance briefly flickered inside Ezran, but knowing that Corvus was merely trying to protect him, he stepped back without argument. Every muscle in Corvus' body tensed as he slowly inched toward the mouth of the hollow, which rippled and glistened as though some kind of gelatinous membrane had been stretched across it, but no sooner had he dipped his hand into the water did the merman hurl Bait at Ezran and snatch hold of the tracker's wrist, dragging him into the water.

"Corvus!"

Before the human had any time to react and start flailing, the merman painted an intricate, glowing rune identical to the one decorating Bait's underbelly onto the palm of his hand, which he then forcefully slammed against Corvus' throat. An involuntary gasp wrenched the tracker's mouth wide open, but instead of icy water, humid but refreshing air rushed into his lungs.

"I...I can breathe..." Corvus' astonishment wore off rather quickly, and upon noticing that the merman had let go of him, he immediately tried to throw himself at the creature in the best assault that he could manage while suspended in water. Unfortunately, his actions proved ill-advised as the merman easily swatted him away with his tail, sending him flying backwards into the bed of gravel below where he groaned and wheezed for a moment before trying to push himself back up.

"Are you done or do I need to smack you around some more for you to realize that you are in no position to take me head-on?" the merman jeered while lazily floating on his back a yard or so above Corvus' head, seeming quite carefree despite having just been attacked.

"You are making a huge mistake. The armies of Katolis will hunt you down and gut you like the slimy fish you are-"

"If you are going to waste my time with empty threats, I can just kill you and lure someone else down here who is willing to do whatever is necessary to rescue the boy."

"What do you want?"

With slow, languid movements, the creature glided effortlessly in a tight circle around Corvus before tucking his tail fin beneath the man's chin, forcing their eyes to meet.

"Rumor has it that Katolis stole the egg of the Dragon Prince as opposed to destroying it, and a shift in the magical energy on this side of the border has me convinced that they took something else from the lair of the Dragon King as well."

"That's all? You kidnapped us because of a hunch-"

"Please don't interrupt; it's rude." the merman chastised him with a firm thwack to the underside of his jaw for good measure. "You will go back to Katolis and search every crevice of the kingdom for a mirror decorated with runes. Bring this mirror back to me and I will release the three of you, unharmed."

"How long do I have?"

"The water-to-air enchantment that I've cast over the hollow will expire in about a week. Oh, and just so we're completely clear, don't even try bringing reinforcements back with you. I'm not particularly fond of uninvited guests." Skimming away again, the merman began tracing out another rune, this one much larger than the first, in the water. "Now, take one last big gulp of air. You will no longer be able to breathe once you have left my home."

With that, he pushed the rune outwards, and a mighty current dragged Corvus down large tunnel located on the other side of the larger cavern. Glancing back at the little pocket in the rocky wall, the creature caught a glimpse of the glower the young king was sending his way while he held the glowtoad protectively in his little arms.

"This isn't anything personal, your majesty. It's just business."

\--------------------------------------

" _You have until noon to meet us by the grove of wild pear trees on the other side of the town, understand? Don't get distracted and lose track of time!"_

Anora's words repeated in Callum's mind as his eyes wandered to the sky above only for him to immediately regret his rather foolish choice as the bright sunlight stung his eyes.

"Are you sure that this is a shortcut because I'm starting to think that taking the main road would've been faster- Ow! When did a crate get there?"

"With as crowded as the main road gets at this time of day, these alleys are definitely going to get us to the shop sooner. Also, maybe if you kept looking ahead instead of up, you would've seen the crate coming." Madeleine replied rather smugly as she rounded a corner, quickly grabbing hold of Callum's sleeve and pulling him with her so that he wouldn't smack into the brick wall directly in front of him.

"Alright, you got me. How do you know that this blacksmith will help us, though?"

"Tobias only has one kid and the twit doesn't know a thing about smithing to save his life, so in exchange for my help with his shop, he gives Anora and I whatever supplies we need to survive." Glancing back at the prince, she added rather in a teasing tone, "What did you think we lived off of? Berries and grubs?"

The mention of grubs brought a wave of unpleasant phantom bugs slinking about in Callum's throat and stomach, nearing causing him to gag aloud, but the prince quite literally swallowed the sensation and blocked the memory of Lujanne's "cooking" from his mind before it could make him sick again.

"I might be getting a little too personal here, but you and Anora seem to really trust and care for each other."

"So do you and Rayla."

Callum's cheeks lit up with bright pink fire, but he continued to ramble on as if he hadn't heard the remark, though his words were noticeably more jumbled and rushed now, "How did you two get like that? I mean, why did you start to trust each other? Rayla and I had the common goal of getting Zym home and ending the war, and even then it took awhile for us to warm up to each other."

A blanket of sincerity settled over Maddie, momentarily masking her impish nature, and a softer, sweeter smile replaced her mischievous grin. "Well, Anora was gentle and kind and beautiful; basically she was the exact opposite of everything that I had been taught about elves. The whole saving my life thing definitely helped with winning me over too. It still took time for us to reach the point we're at now, but a little compassion can take you a long way. Any more burning questions?"

"Well, actually-"

"Oh look at that, we're here!"

Callum's unamused glower went entirely unnoticed by Madeleine as she waltzed up the short set of creaky stairs that led up to a little porch with a back door, the gleaming brass knob looking extremely out of place next to the weathered wood that somehow didn't give way as Madeleine yanked on the handle.

For some reason, the groaning of the door sent a flurry of uneasy butterflies fluttering about in Callum's stomach. "Are you sure that we can just come in this way? Maybe we should circle around to the front-"

"Callum, you're overthinking this. I already told you that Tobias is a friend. Look, you can wait out here if you really want to, but this is all gonna go a lot faster if I have an extra set of hands to help carry the supplies."

She made some good points, and while a few of his nerves still flitted about in an anxious tizzy, most of Callum's initial jitters had subsided. However, his feet still dragged somewhat as he trudged through the door in pursuit of Madeleine after she had already disappeared inside.

Callum had somewhat been expecting a blast of muggy heat to the face as the miniature hallway attached to the back entrance widened into what he assumed was the back room and workspace of the blacksmith's shop, but the air was actually cooler than it had been outside. The stone forge located against the wall on their left was completely dark and appeared to have been that way for at least a few days, and the room was unexpectedly tidy and free of any loose pieces or signs of labor. Callum didn't have to ask Madeleine if something was wrong; the bewilderment with a pinch of apprehension smeared across her face told him all he needed to know.

"Maybe we should go meet back up with Rayla and Anora and try again later. He could just be out at the moment-"

Madeleine didn't even hear Callum as she wandered past the cold forge and the untouched tools lined up neatly in their appropriate spots and poked her head through the doorway that led to the front of the shop. This room too was devoid of the usual signs of life as particles of dusted lazily floated around the room instead of browsing customers and the bell above the front door hung still and silent. The daylight streaming through the windows provided enough light for Madeleine to carefully navigate her way over to the service counter without bumping into anything, but it was just as bare as the back room aside from a faint blanket of dust.

It wasn't long before Callum poked his head into the room as well. "Madeleine?"

"Tobias always leaves a note if he has to go somewhere, even if it's on short notice."

"Maybe he just forgot."

"No, that just isn't like him. I know he said that he would be leaving to go sell some wares at a fair towards the outskirts of Katolis soon, but even after telling me ahead of time, he _still_ would've left a note just in case."

"Well, what do we do now?"

Madeleine was at a complete loss, and it was at that moment that the squeal of the back door being opened again rang out throughout the shop. Mind clouded with relieved excitement, she dashed past Callum back into the workroom only to clumsily skid to a stop when she was met not my the jolly old blacksmith with tanned skin, a kind face, and an unruly black beard that she had come to adore but by a lanky young man with a harsh scowl and even harsher eyes.

Callum and Madeleine both hardly dared to breathe as the newcomer regarded them with surprise followed by anger and then malevolence, his lips stretching from a tight line into a dastardly sneer.

"Well, what have we here? Two rotten little thieves snooping around in my dad's shop?"

The hairs on the back of Madeleine's neck rose on end. "What are you talking about, Midan? You know full well that your dad and I have a deal to work together. Where is he?"

"A deal, you say? You got this deal written down on paper?"

"What? No!"

"No? Then you might just be lying to me so I don't call the authorities on you for breaking in and trying to steal from my old man. I knew you were going to be trouble from the moment Dad told me about you, little rat."

"We weren't going to steal anything! I just need to talk to Tobias-"

"The only person you're going to be talking to is the sheriff," Midan hissed before slyly adding, "unless, of course, you give me a good reason for not turning you over."

Callum's heart had jumped into his throat as Midan and Madeleine were arguing, but he nonetheless managed to find his voice somehow, though there was a distinct quiver to it now. "We need help. We're going on a long and important journey and we need supplies-"

"Couldn't care less." Midan sharply cut in, not even sparing Callum so much as a glance. Instead, he kept his eyes locked on Madeleine, his devilish grin never wavering as he waited for her to arrive at the conclusion he knew she would have to face.

"What do you want?"

And there it was.

"Well, with Dad in the hospital after breaking his foot a few days ago, it seemed that I was going to have to regretfully withdraw the business from this year's Five Kingdoms' Artisans Fair since...well..."

"You can't even craft a chamber pot?" Madeleine quickly chipped in, not one to miss the opportunity for a witty jab even in her current circumstances.

Midan's smile soured but he tried to pretend as though the girl's comment inflicted no damage upon his pride. "You and your friend here are going on a journey, huh? Well, it looks like your trip is going to include a pitstop at the fair. Now won't that be fun?"


	5. Chapter 5

Aaravos adored games, especially when those games involved real risks and consequences. Every sparkling fiber of his being would vibrate with excitement as he carefully ushered each pawn into place to create a grand masterpiece that he alone could see unfolding. At times, one of those pawns might start to shift out of alignment, operating of its own accord instead of by the will of its master, but it never took more than a few polished half-truths to lure the insurgent back into place. Patience was the key to success, and if being imprisoned for longer than he cared to calculate had taught him anything, it was patience.

Things may have seemed placid in Viren's cell, but as his grub-like vassal clung to the shell of the mage's ear, Aaravos sensed that the castle was still abuzz even at this late hour. He could feel the reverberations of marching feet through the stone floor and walls, and he could faintly hear the whispering of a gentle wind overtop of Viren's muffled snores. Most importantly, however, he could sense the baleful nip tainting the air as something wicked steadily closed in on the dungeon where it sensed its master's presence.

"It would seem that your phantoms have returned." he crooned smoothly, fully aware that Viren could not hear him from the realm of dreams. "Do not fret. I will take care of everything."

Peeling itself off of Viren's ear, the little caterpillar inched its way across the mage's cot and then up the cell wall until he reached the grate in the ceiling. After wiggling through with ease, it only had to wait a moment or so in the deserted courtyard above before being blanketed in shadow as four pairs of blank, glowing, purple-tinged eyes peered down at it from within towers of churning smoke that vaguely resembled the shape of elves. To anyone else, these creatures of shadow would've been terrifying, but the little caterpillar raised itself up and stared right back at them with an air of haughtiness.

"Your master is resting, but it is not yet time for you to do the same. You still have work to do." Aaravos crooned without a hint of hesitance even though the phantoms could easily trample the caterpillar beneath their heels if they wished too. Why? Even though they could, he knew that they wouldn't, for just like the mage who had summoned them, they were also drawn to the power emanating off of him.

"Your master's possessions have been scattered across the land in an attempt to control him, and one of these relics could be your and his undoing. Bring back the coin in which your leader is imprisoned, the leader who in his pride led you all to your deaths, and you will soon have your rest."

Though their faces showed no expression as the shadows continued to listlessly sway back and forth in the wind, Aaravos could sense their reluctance. It seemed even as phantoms, traces of past loyalties and autonomous thought still lived on inside them; this, however, was not a major problem for him.

"Why do you hesitate? Does it not anger you that the one responsible for your demise now has a chance to return home to the open arms of his family while yours grieve your loss? He made the call to move forward with your mission knowing full well that your chances of survival were slim, and now he simply gets to walk away from that while your blood, the blood of those who trusted him, stains the floors of this palace? Should he not suffer a fate worse than death?"

One by one, a change swept over each ghost, their eyes glowing brighter as their previous uncertainty was burned up by the flames of bitterness; it was a light and a heat that Aaravos never grew tired off as he drank it in again and again.

"Go. Find your leader's coin and its brothers. Justice will not be denied."

* * *

"Can I skewer him?"

"No."

"What about mildly maim him?"

"No."

"...Can I at least give him a bad enough gash that he'll need stitches?"

"No! The last thing we need to do is draw attention to ourselves by being petty and starting a fight."

"He kidnapped Callum and Maddie!"

"And we are going to discreetly get them back. We fight only as a last resort."

"Ugh, fine!"

It wasn't that Anora couldn't understand Rayla's desire for payback, but retribution never just ended once the scores were even. Having to worry about a vengeful party pursuing them would only further complicate their already complex quest, so for now retaliation, though tempting, was not an option.

It hadn't exactly taken the two elves long to realize that something was wrong, but true to the stories Madeleine had told Anora about Midan, the blacksmith's son indeed proved to be a slippery serpent to catch. Despite managing to procure adequate disguises and sneak into town fairly quickly, Midan was already gone by the time they found the shop and discovered the note that Madeleine had managed to tuck amongst the tools in the back room without getting caught. The fact that they had to ask around about the location of the artisans' fair before finding someone that actually knew only added further to Midan's head start, and while Anora and Rayla probably could have caught up with him if they were on their own, Zym's restlessness meant making occasional stops during their journey, thus allowing the scoundrel to remain one step ahead of them.

By the time they arrived at the fairgrounds, the festivities were already in full swing with more humans crowding around exhibits and mingling between stalls than either elf had seen in her whole life. From this resulted their current situation of hiding in a dense thicket of shrubs not too far off from the line of tents, Rayla keeping watch while Anora attempted to coax Zym into a basket that the younger elf had "borrowed" from the back of an unwatched cart.

"It's only for a little bit, cutie, I promise. Come on! You want another treat?" Grabbing one of the fresh figs from the rations in her bag, Anora placed it inside the basket. "There, now you've got a fig, an apple, some berries, and some milkfruit, a feast fit for a prince. What do ya say, Zym?"

After a moment of thinking as critically as a baby dragon could, Zym tentatively sniffed the mouth of the basket before apparently being won over as he hoped inside with a happy trill. Once she had secured the lid of the basket in place and carefully shrugged the case onto her back, Anora fixed her hood and cloak and stuffed her hands into her gloves, Rayla following suit.

"I still don't see why we can't just split up and meet back here. We'll cover more ground that way." Rayla grumbled as she fiddled with the pink finger of her gloves that had been stuffed with leaves and a twig to mimic a fifth finger. A surprised sputter sprayed from her lips when Anora suddenly appeared in front of her and began smudging dirt over her markings to complete her disguise.

"Midan is smart. If he notices the same two hooded figures frequenting his booth, he might become suspicious, and the longer we're here, the higher our chances of getting caught become. We need to find them, come up with a plan, execute it, and then leave as quickly and quietly as possible." With her and Rayla's tattoos concealed beneath a layer of grime, Anora briskly exited the safety of the shrubs and beckoned Rayla to follow her with a small jerk of her head. "Come on!"

Zym thankfully stayed contently quiet in the basket as the girls crept past the outermost tents and into the fray, heads down and senses alert. After passing several stalls from all of which the heavenly smell of baked goods wafted, it dawned on them that the booths were probably arranged according to trade, meaning they would not have to scour the entire grounds so long as they found the designated area for the blacksmiths. The density of the crowds and the scarcity of maps or directional signs to promote more sales as s wandered aimlessly about ensured that their task remained somewhat difficult, but the smell of burning timber and the ringing of many mallets hammering away at different metals eventually drew them to the right place. As the fourth stall on their left came into view, Rayla was the first to catch a glimpse of those familiar green eyes beneath that mop of fluffy, brown hair, and it didn't take long for them to lock back onto her.

Callum pretended not to notice the two elves until they had crossed over to the stall, and he bit down hard on the inside of his cheek to keep himself from smiling as he made his way over to the booth's counter as casually as he could. Casting an apprehensive glance back at Midan, who was busy chatting with two reasonably attractive dames at the other end of the stand, he made sure to grab a few odd bits and baubles as he went.

"Hi ladies! What can I help you with?!" he announced quite loudly, depositing the knickknacks onto the counter with a harsh clamor, and to his relief, Midan didn't even spare him a look of disdain. Picking up one of the miscellaneous trinkets scattered in front of him, he held it out as if showing it to the two elves, his voice dropped to a whisper as he leaned over the countertop. "I can't talk long without Midan becoming suspicious. Where's Zym?"

Rayla jerked her head toward the basket while Anora took the trinket from Callum and turned it over in her palm. "Are you alright? Where's Maddie?"

"She's in the back and we're both fine other than being a little tired. In fact, she's been tinkering with something since our arrival last night that she believes will distract Midan long enough for us to slip away."

Pride dressed Anora's lips with a lustrous shimmer like the most beautiful of rouges. "Why am I not surprised? Is there anything that we can do to help?"

"There's one more thing that we need but haven't been able to get since we're constantly being watched."

"What do you need?"

"Wildflowers. Lots of 'em."

Rayla's nose wrinkled at the absurd request. "Flowers? What are flowers going to do?"

"He's allergic." Anora muttered, nodding at Midan as theories about Maddie's plan began to take form in her mind. "He obviously can't see us giving them to you."

"Bring them to the back of the tent and toss a rock through the back entrance to let Maddie know that you've made the dropoff. She'll tell you the rest of the plan, and I'll do what I can to keep Midan busy in the meantime."

Rayla groaned under her breath. "Don't do anything stupid."

"Why do you always assume that I'm going to do something stupid?"

"Because you usually do something stupid!"

"You two are cute, but let's save the flirting for a less precarious time, yeah?" Out of the corner of her eye, Anora noticed the two maidens who had been preoccupying Midan's attention were departing, meaning that the louse would be on them in moments if she and Rayla stuck around for too much longer. Setting the trinket that she was still holding back down on the counter, she extended her hand to Callum, who shook it as soon as he realized what she was doing.

"Don't push yourself too hard. You'll need whatever energy you have left for hightailing out of here."

Callum's eyes remained locked with Rayla's until she and Anora were swallowed up by the throng of festival patrons. Gathering up the samples that he had brought out, he spun on his heels and beelined for the curtains separating the front of the tent from the workspace in back. However, just before he could cross the threshold and disappear, he was yanked to a stop by Midan's hand firmly clamping down on his shoulder.

"Don't tell me you spent all that time talking to those two clients and didn't sell anything?"

Callum swallowed thickly to push down the anxious butterflies fluttering in the back of his throat. "They...They said that they had some other errands to run first and would come back if they had the money."

"Let me handle the transaction when they return. I want to make sure that the payment is...authentic given their haggard appearance. Business is going to slow down as the crowds congregate at the indoor attractions to escape the heat of the day, so go wash off and polish those samples. I trust the cleanliness of those bums as much as their money."

* * *

The sun hung just above the tops of the tents on the far west side of the festival grounds, painting everything with a golden glow.

"Blasted sun. No matter where I stand, it's shining in my eyes." Midan grumbled sourly, shielding his face with his hand as he stumbled about half-blind. "Clem!"

"Um, it's Callum."

"Whatever. Go scrounge around in the back and see if you can find anything to block out that darn sun!"

"Uh, you got it!"

As Callum slipped through the curtains in the back room, Madeleine raised her head from the two small metal tubes sitting in her lap and locked eyes with him. At his nod, she rose, handing him one of the cylinders and held the other to her chest as she left her comrade to gather both their things.

"Midan?" She winced as she poked her head through the doorway right into a particularly bright ray of sunlight.

"Why aren't you working?"

"I'm waiting for the last order to cool down enough so I can polish it." Raising one hand to shield her face while blinking rapidly to quell the tears that welled to defend her eyes from the bright assault, Maddie just barely made out the Midan's silhouette and strode over to him. "I just wanted to talk to you about an idea I had for a new product."

"You're being unusually considerate. You heatsick or something?"

"No. You and I may not like each other, but your dad is still my business partner. He's going to need all the extra cash that he can get for his medical expenses, right?"

"Touché. Tell me what you've got."

"I can do better than that. I built a prototype during my lunch break!" Tucking the braided cord attached to the bottom of the tube beneath her thumb to hide it from sight, Maddie held out the gadget for Midan to see. "I haven't decided on an official name yet, but for now I'm calling them celebration starters!"

Midan squinted at the cylinder. "...It's an embellished pipe."

"Wrong! It's much more than that!"

"Is that so? How does it work then, little genius?"

"Like this!"

Without missing a beat, Madeleine pulled the string attached to the celebration starter as far as it would go and then released it, aiming the barrel directly at Midan's face. Wildflowers of all colors shot into the air with a pop, and the noise was soon followed by three others just like it as more flowers filled the air. The festival-goers all gasped in delight as the fragrant petals rained down on them, but Midan's reddening eyes had bugged out in horror.

"You little-" His exclamation was cut off by a thunderous sneeze, Madeleine springing just beyond the reach of his fingers when he made a mad grab from her.

As much as she would've liked to stick around and relish over her fine work, Maddie speedily vaulted herself over the counter and sprinted into the crowd. Catching a flicker of Callum's scarlet scarf in the evening light somewhere off to her right, she veered off in that direction, focusing all of her strength into her legs until she had caught up with him, and together they ran towards the chosen meeting place: the eastern entrance of the grounds. Their feet had already begun to burn like they were running over a bed of hot coals by the time the pillars decorated with many colorful banners and other ornaments rose into few, and just as they flung themselves down at the base of the one columns in order to catch their breath, Anora and Rayla burst forth from the sea of people, panting heavily as they refused to slow even slightly.

"Get up! We gotta go!" the latter shouted, eyes wide and frantic.

Before Callum could ask what was wrong, the crowd parted for a portly man with a crimson face marred by an angry scowl as he charged after the two elves with his son and daughter flanking him.

"Thieves! Thieves!" he bellowed.

Anora grabbed Callum and Maddie by their arms and more or less dragged them to their feet while Rayla continued to run, her fist pressed against her chest as something glittered inside. The prince's mouth hung agape, his eyes darting from his friends to their pursuers.

"What did you guys do?!"

* * *

_Moments earlier…_

It was a beautiful sight that Anora would've liked to enjoy, the flower petals dancing through the air like snow after being launched from Madeleine's invention, but she and Rayla dutifully slipped the now empty gadgets into their belts and ducked behind a wall of stalls. Keeping their heads down and bodies low to the ground, they zipped along their predetermined course completely unnoticed aside from catching the attention of the occasional small child who was quickly shushed by a preoccupied parent, and the steady sinking of the sun created many long shadows that stretched out to offer them additional cover. However, it soon became apparent that they had forgotten to consider one particular detail when it came to their seemingly seamless plan: Zym.

Having been startled out of a deep nap by the loud pops of the celebration starters, Zym clawed quite furiously at the lid of the basket, and with a few good swipes, he managed to tear a hole just large enough for him to wiggle out of. His little feet scarcely touched Anora's back before he unfurled his wings and sprang into the air, giving neither elf much time to react as he glided through the air and scampered through the back entryway of a large, deep indigo tent as soon as he touched the ground.

When their minds finally processed what had just happened, Rayla and Anora dug their heels into the dirt and swerved in the direction of the tent, halting just a few inches shy of the opening in the wall of cloth.

"Zym! Come back here! You can't be in there!" Rayla called as she peered into the darkness, searching for any sign of white down or icy blue scales that should've stuck out like a sore thumb against the shadows of the tent. All she was met with was a soft, anxious whine from the dragonling, the origin of which she couldn't quite pinpoint.

"I don't think he's coming out on his own," Anora muttered, sliding the basket off of her back. Taking the lavender scarf that hung around her waist and laying it out flat on the ground, she placed the busted lid on top of it and wrapped it in the soft but fairly sturdy material, tightly tying the ends to ensure that it didn't come loose. Tucking the lid under her arm, she handed the barrel of the basket to Rayla. "I'll try herding him back towards you, but you'll need to be completely silent if we don't want him to bolt. Think you can do that, Moondrop?"

"...You're kidding, right?"

"I know, I know. I'm just trying to lighten the mood."

Hearts hammering against their ribs, they slunk into the belly of the pavilion, their soft, careful footsteps sounding more like the stomping of elephants to their own ears. When their eyes adjusted to the dimness, they found that the inside was mostly filled with an array of colorful tapestries decorated with what had to be the most degrading depictions of different kinds of elves that either girl had ever seen. Towards the center of the room stood three ornately carved, wooden pedestals topped with soft pillows, and above each one hung a series of banners that could just barely be read from where they stood if they squinted.

"...Haunted Coins from Xadia?" Rayla scoffed with blatant disgust, "Are you serious?! We don't even have haunted coins! Who would actually believe this nonsense?!"

"You'd be surprised," Anora remarked absent-mindedly, having already dismissed the laughable exhibit and resumed her scouring for the baby dragon. As soon as she noticed a pale shape crouching behind the base of pillar closest to them, she pointed it out to Rayla followed by drawing two arcs in the air that eventually met at a point in front of her. Rayla immediately understood and began to close in on the pillar from the left while Anora took to the right.

"Zym," she called when she was close enough to see the tip of the dragonling's nose poking out from behind the pillar. "I know you're a bit spooked right now, but we have to go before we get caught. There will be no more loud, scary noises, I promise."

Zym's answer was a shrill, suspicious yip, nostrils flaring slightly when Anora entered his line of sight. Slowly dropping down into a crouch, the elf held her hand out to him as she inched closer, not daring to glance at Rayla to ensure she was ready and risk Zym realizing what they were up to. Fortunately, Zym's attention remained fixated on Anora as he shuffled his feet uncertainly while Rayla tiptoed up behind him, basket held out in front of her. They had him cornered, and when Anora lunged forward, Zym spun on his heels and fled straight towards the mouth of the basket. At the last moment, however, he spread his wings and splayed out his little limbs, his front claws grabbing onto the rim, and using the edge as a foothold, he propelled himself upward at a slight angle. Anora leaped into the air before he could get very high, wrapping her arms around the prince's middle and pulling him to her chest. Unfortunately, she hadn't paid much thought to her trajectory in her haste, and thus she came crashing down on top of the pedestal, which proved to be much flimsier than it looked as it crumbled beneath her weight.

"Yep, that's definitely going to leave a mark." she groaned, rolling onto her side and then up into a sitting position all while Zym flailed in her arms. Rayla was by her side in the blink of an eye where she held the basket steady so Anora could place Zym inside.

"He's a little fighter; I suppose that's a good thing though." the Oceancry elf remarked as she secured the lid once more and slipped her arm through one of the vessel's straps, hoisting it up onto her back again. Shifting onto her knees so she could stand back up, she jerked to a stop when something resting on the bed of splinters beneath her snagged her eye.

"Rayla...you said Xadia doesn't have any haunted coins, right? Then why does that one have a moving face on it?"

"You mean your reflection? Besides, that isn't even a Xadian coin…"

"Rayla?"

The color drained from Rayla's already pale face and her eyes widened to the size of two full moons as she stooped down, unable to believe what she saw. Staring back at her was a face she knew all too well despite being clouded with a fear that she had never seen adorning those features before, and as she gently scooped the coin into her trembling hand, she watched the terror melt away and sheer relief rise up in its place.

"Runaan..." she whimpered, hand clamped over her mouth as she fought back the urge to break into tears. Suddenly, it felt very hard to breathe, as if the weight of the entire world was pressing down on her lungs. "...how did you...what...who did this to you?"

"Hey! What are you doing?!"

Anora's head snapped up to behold a middle-aged man and four children of varying maturities looming in the main entrance of the tent. The man, obviously the owner of the tent, glared at them with two small, beady eyes that peered out from behind bushy brown brows and bulging cheeks, grinding his feet into the dirt as he prepared to charge. Snatching up the pillow from the remains of the pedestal, she hurled it at the man, nailing him in the face.

"Rayla, run!"

With their father momentarily disoriented, the two eldest children, a boy and a girl, rushed at them. Glancing upwards, Anora noticed how the weight of the numerous tapestries was causing the roof of the tent to sag, so she grabbed the closest one and yanked it as hard as she could. This proved to be just enough strain as the center of the tent caved inward, cutting them off from their assailants. Brought back to her wits by Anora's shout, the commotion, or a combination of the two, Rayla closed her fist tightly around the coin and barreled back out into the open with Anora close behind her.


	6. Chapter 6

"Rayla, it feels like my legs are about to fall off! Can we stop for a minute?"

"We need to get a little farther first to make sure we've lost them-"

"Rayla, please! I-I think I'm gonna be sick."

Rayla's heart wrenched at Callum's plea but she didn't falter in her gallop. He didn't understand. She couldn't slow down, for if she did, the adrenaline that was currently clouding her mind would dissipate, making room for the thoughts that she desperately wanted to keep at bay. Unfortunately, she hardly had time to register Anora's hand latching onto her arm before she was sharply jerked to a halt. Behind Anora, whose cheeks were flushed from the extensive sprint, Callum and Maddie fumbled clumsily over their own feet as they fought against their inertia and managed to stop just before colliding with the elf, and not a moment later, the two collapsed into panting piles of sweat and limbs on the grass.

The first thing that Rayla noticed when her mind cleared was the acute aching in the fingers and palm of her hand which was still clenched as tightly as possible around the coin, and she didn't have to look down to know that her knuckles had turned a shade other than their natural color. Next was the wobbling of her legs, her knees having locked of their own accord to keep her from crumpling like her comrades; she still, however, lacked a great deal of grace as she lowered herself down to ground to give her body a rest. Though it hurt even more to move them as to let them be, Rayla gradually unfurled her stiff fingers and stared down at the little gold disk that weighed as much as a boulder despite being no larger than the fluffiest adoraburr. Runaan gazed wordlessly up at her from the confines of his unusual prison, and while he tried his best to conceal it beneath his standard stoic mask, the dark bags beneath his dull eyes and the weary lines carved into his face told of restless nights and painfully long days of total isolation.

Before she knew it, a hot wetness had dampened Rayla's left cheek, followed by her left, and with utter horror, she realized she had begun to cry. In a flash, her fingers coiled back around the coin while her other hand flew to her mouth to muffle her whimpering in case Runaan could actually hear her from inside of the coin. He couldn't see her crying. Crying was a sign of weakness and she couldn't bear the thought of disappointing him further, even if it meant keeping her pain hidden away in the dark where it would grow and fester. Locking her lips to keep her sobs at bay, she began vigorously brushing away her tears, but no matter how hard and fast she wiped, the tear stains still gleamed on her face.

Unable to watch the heart-wrenching scene before her in silence for a moment longer, Anora knelt down beside Rayla and threw her arms around her, praying that the younger girl wouldn't pull away and potentially retaliate for her forwardness. To the relief of herself and Rayla, the latter surrendered herself into the embrace despite the avid protests of her mind and her pride, resting her head against Anora's shoulder while she in return rested her chin atop the girl's crown and comfortingly massaged the valley between her shoulder blades with her fingers. She knew it was petty, but nonetheless Anora scowled down at the fist concealing the coin, hoping that Runaan would sense her disapproving stare even if he couldn't see it. Her parents had taught her enough about Moonshadow elves for her to understand why Rayla wouldn't want a man she heralded as a father figure and mentor to see her upset, and while she understood and respected that the concealment of certain emotions to avoid appearing weak was part of their culture, she disagreed strongly with the notion to say the least.

"This is all my fault." Rayla managed to lament after enough air reached her lungs between shallow hiccups.

"Moondrop, how could this possibly be your fault?"

"The humans knew we were coming and had a chance to prepare because of me. I tried not to think about the attack or what might have happened after the king was killed, but I never could've imagined-Oh gods, there were more coins back there! Some of the other assassins could be trapped in them as well and we just left without trying to help them too! Ugh, I'm such an idiot-"

"Rayla, that's enough!" Cupping the younger girl's face in her hands, Anora raised it up so that their eyes met, her own glittering with maternal fire while Rayla's widened in surprise at her sudden ferocity. You told me how you tried to call off the assasination; the responsibility for your team's choice and the consequences of that call are not your burdens to bear. If you think we have a chance, I'll go back with you to get the other coins while Maddie and Callum keep an eye on Zym and rest."

At the mention of his name, Zym thrust his head upward and knocked basket cover loose again, and with the lid perched on his head like a hat, he sprang up onto Anora's shoulder and curiously surveyed his surroundings. It didn't take the dragonling long to notice Rayla's sad expression and moist cheeks, and with a concerned yip, he started licking her face until she laughed, earning himself a reward of gentle scratches on the nape from Anora.

"I want to go back, but their keeper is bound to be on the lookout for us now. Getting captured is something we can't afford, but to just leave them seems…"

Anora understood that this decision was a hard one, and gently folding her hands overtop of Rayla's, she gave them a reassuring squeeze. "There is nothing to say we won't get another chance to free your comrades."

"There's nothing to say we will either."

"Well, that's just where we are going to need to have a little faith. For now, let's see what we can do to help your friend."

Turning her fist over in Anora's lap, Rayla opened it as the other elf leaned forward to get a better look at the coin. Runaan's expression hardened at the sight of a new face, his eyes darting up and down her form multiple times while he sized her up as was typical behavior for him given his occupation. His keen focus visibly shattered, however, when Anora started tapping the face of the coin without warning.

"Magic is obviously what got your mentor into this mess and it's what is going to get him back out. We just need to figure out what kind of spell we're dealing with here." Anora remarked with several more hardy taps. "Hmm, no ripples; that rules out a reflection spell then. I suppose that's a good thing."

Rayla's brow curved into a high arch. "You never said anything about being an Ocean mage."

"I'm not; my parents were though. I know bits and pieces about some different spells, but I was too busy chasing otters or racing hippocampi to study the art myself while growing up." Taking the coin between her forefinger and thumb, Anora gently shook it a little and then squinted down at it again, ignoring the sour glare Runaan was aiming at her as she searched for something else in the coin's face. "No bubbles either. I don't really recall my parents ever mentioning a spell capable of trapping someone inside any kind of object, so my hunch is this isn't an Ocean spell. Callum, can you come here please? We need your expertise on Sky magic."

"Um, I've only been a mage for about two weeks, so I don't think I'll be of much help." Even as he spoke, however, Callum was already staggering back to his feet and dragging himself over to Rayla's side. The minute he came into Runaan's line of sight, the latter shrank back, his features contorting into a feral snarl of wariness that was, in all honesty, a little comical given his current state.

Anora sent Callum a sidelong glance. "He doesn't seem to be too fond of you."

"Yeah well, our first meeting wasn't exactly on...friendly terms." Ignoring the phantom daggers Runaan was shooting up at him, Callum studied the coin in silence for a moment before voicing his thoughts. "The last time we saw Runaan, he was leading the attack against my dad...I took the Primal Stone, and I don't think Viren had another...That leaves one other explanation."

Rayla's heart dropped into her stomach. "You think it's dark magic."

"It's gotta be. Maybe a Sky spell will still be able to break him out though. Rayla, set the coin down and I'll try zapping-"

"No!" Clutching the coin to her chest, Rayla scooted back a little, leaving Callum to stare at her with confusion and hurt swirling in his wide eyes. He had hardly blinked, however, before Anora was beside him, her arm slung around his shoulders in a reassuring side hug.

"That's very kind of you, Callum, but I agree with Rayla that that's not a good idea. There's a chance of the coin being damaged or destroyed if we don't use the right counterspell, which would leave Runaan trapped forever. You understand?" Relieved when she sensed the tension dissipating, which meant she had successfully averted the tricky situation, Anora slung both Zym's basket and the satchel of rations off of her back, setting them down by her feet. "Why don't we take this moment to fill our bellies and replenish our strength before we continue on our way? Maddie, you think you can manage to drag yourself over here or do I need to come carry you?"

Rather than snickering mixed with a few choice words from the little redhead, her taunt was met by the snapping of a lone twig as it was trampled underfoot. The sickening crunch shot out among the trees, whose leaves rustled slightly as though they too were plagued with unease at the sound, and as their anxious whispers echoed overhead, Rayla leaped to her feet after tucking Runaan safely in her pocket and assumed a combative stance alongside Callum, who also stood at the ready. Anora, meanwhile, scooped a squirmy, chittering Zym up with one arm and beckoned Madeleine to her side with the other all while watching the brush for any signs of movement.

"I would say I told ya so, but I'm gonna wait on gloating until we're out of immediate danger." Rayla's face bore no sneer nor even a trace of a smirk, but the potent smugness in her voice more than made up for it.

Just as Madeleine finally slipped into the safety of her comrades' shadows, an idea struck Anora. "Maddie, you have any more of those celebration starters in your bag?"

"Ya know, I'm not so sure I want to call them celebration starters anymore. The name's too wordy and doesn't roll off the tongue-"

"It doesn't matter what they're called-" Before Rayla could finish, Anora swiftly cut in, her reprimand firm but gentle.

"Maddie, priorities."

"Right, right, sorry. I've got something even better for the occasion." Rifling through her bag, Madeleine produced two items while beaming with pride: a metallic, simply decorated cylinder the length of her arm and the wristbow with which they had already been acquainted. After strapping the latter onto her dominant hand, she handed the former to a perplexed Anora, "There's a couple of kinks that I still need to tinker out, but it should work well enough for now."

Noticing a little knob on the side of the device, Anora gave it a gentle twist. With some clangs and clicks, the cylinder shot outwards on both sides, causing Anora and Zym to jump, until it stood at a height of just a hair taller than Anora. Reaching over, Maddie jiggled the staff slightly followed by tugging on it with all her strength.

"Good, looks like all the interior bolts are secure. Just don't smack anyone too hard or they might get knocked loose."

"Maddie, when...why…"

"Well, your folks taught you to use a bo staff, right? You said yours got turned to cinders in the attack; now you have one that can't burn!"

Tears pricked Anora's eyes as she swept Madeleine into a tight hug, which the latter readily returned. "Thank you…"

"Um, sorry not sorry about ruining the moment, but could ya save the sappiness for later? We're kind of in the middle of a situation!" Rayla called over her shoulder, not daring to look back for even a moment and thus give the enemy an opportunity to strike.

Callum shot her a look of disapproval. "Rayla!"

"What?! There's a time and a place, and this is not the time or the place!"

As though on cue, aggressive rustling rang out from some bushes off to their left which shuddered as their unwelcome contact drew closer.

"Wait a minute," Maddie interjected out of the blue. "We came running from the other direction. How'd the merchant get ahead of us without being noticed?"

Instead of the round, angry merchant, the shrubbery spat out a disheveled Corvus, who ceased muttering to himself when he perceived the faces before him.

"Rayla! Prince Callum!"

"Corvus? Oh thank the gods! We thought you were-" Callum's relief was cut short when he noticed the apprehension lurking in Corvus's face, from the bags beneath his eyes to his tightly drawn lips, along with the absence of his brother and the grumpy glowtoad from his side, "-Wait, where are Ezran and Bait?"

"Don't tell me ya lost 'em again? What kind of tracker are you?" Rayla jeered only for dread's icy claws to seize her innards when she received no reaction, not even an indignant huff, from the man. "Hey, I was just joking. Corvus?"

Corvus slumped to his knees, his body collapsing in on itself, and if he hadn't thrown his arm out in front of him to cushion his head as he fell into a repentant bow, he would've fullblown face-planted into the dirt. "Please forgive me, my prince. I have failed in my duties and do not deserve to call myself a soldier of Katolis."

The color drained from Callum's face, leaving him paler than a specter shrouded in moonlight. "Where is my brother?!"

Corvus swallowed thickly, hardly able to speak as shame and terror nearly swelled his throat shut. "King Ezran has been captured and is being held for ransom. I have a week to fulfill his captor's demands or he will be killed."

Rayla and Anora both threw out their arms to catch Callum as he stumbled back, eyes wide with terror while his breath puffed from his lips in short, rapid bursts. Memories of Callum's frightening delirium from not even an entire week earlier engulfed Rayla's mind, so with her heart taking the lead while her head was incapacitated, she squeezed Callum's shoulder and shook him a little to loosen the hold of the spiraling panic which fought to drag him down into its dark, gaping maw.

"Callum, breathe! You need to breathe! We'll get Ez back, I swear it!"

The words tumbled from her lips without much thought, but as though they were magic, Callum's body started to relax, his breathing regulating. Once the last traces of the trance lost their grip and disappeared, his hand slipped overtop of Rayla's, which was still tightly clasping his shoulder, and returned her firm squeeze in a silent expression of thanks and reassurance.

"How much do they want for him? I'll go back to Katolis with you and we can take whatever we need from the palace treasury." It was almost certain that Callum wouldn't be allowed to leave again if he returned home now, which meant saying goodbye to seeing Xadia with his own eyes and, even worse, to Rayla. However, if that was the sacrifice necessary to save his brother's life, he would not hesitate to pay it along with the ransom.

"That is the problem, my prince. This monster doesn't want riches. He asked for something very specific in exchange for your brother: a stolen Xadian mirror decorated with runes."

Something about Corvus's intonation stuck out to both Anora and Rayla, with the former eventually voicing their shared question, "When you say monster, do you mean that figuratively or literally?"

"Literally." Corvus, either just noticing Anora entirely or realizing what she was, paused and took a moment to analyze her intently as he had been trained to do. Apparently finding nothing about her which troubled him, he then continued, "I didn't think creatures like him lived anywhere other than Xadia."

"Creatures like him?"

"Merfolk."

A guttural groan of loathing and dismay reverberated from the depths of Anora's core. She had started to have her suspicions about the identity of this gutsy assailant at the mention of the desired magic mirror, but part of her had fixated on the lack of interest in treasure as proof that it couldn't be who she suspected. There was no denying it now however, even though she oh so desperately wanted to.

"Of course it's him. It's always him."

Corvus sat up a little straighter with obvious interest. "You know this creature?!"

"Blue tail, gold eyes, and irritatingly cheeky?"

"Yes, that's him!"

"I do, unfortunately. His name is Castel, and he's the acolyte of a dangerous archmage, a choice which got him banished from Xadia many years ago. My parents kept an eye on him in his exile to ensure he didn't cause any major trouble, and they had their work cut out for them to say the least." Her usually relaxed nature steadily succumbing to nervous agitation, Anora wrung her hands a few times while she mulled over the facts of the current dilemma. "The only thing that snake loves more than treasure is magic, so this mirror he wants must be some kind of powerful relic. Did he give you any clue about where this mirror is being kept?"

"No, he didn't."

"Uh, are you two serious right now? You're just gonna hand a mysterious magical artifact over to a banished mage? We have no idea what he plans to use it for!" Rayla barked fiercely, although she spared conflicted glances down at Callum as she spoke. She knew her protest might come across as somewhat callous, but attached to the thought of giving this bully exactly what he wanted was a stifling foreboding that left her hair standing on end. "Archmage acolyte or not, there's five of us and one of him. Even if we can't defeat him, we can distract him long enough for one of us to grab Ez and get him to safety!"

"Moondrop, your heart is in the right place, but the risk is just too great. I don't like it any more than you do, but our best option is to just give Castel what he wants."

"Assuming we can even find this mirror in time. I was given a week, but that isn't enough time to search all of the human kingdoms for one object." Gritting his teeth, Corvus pounded his fist against the dirt. "Damn that bastard! Damn him to hell!"

"Hey! Language! There are little ears listening!" Madeleine snapped, throwing her hands over the sides of Zym's head as he perched cutely on her shoulder.

This entire time, Callum had remained deathly quiet, his brows drawn together in critical thought. Reaching into his satchel, he rummaged through it for something. "What if I-"

"No!" Rayla exclaimed, grabbing his arm. "I know exactly what you're thinking! You want to try that tracking spell that Claudia explained she used to find us, but I won't let you!"

"What? No! No dark magic ever again, I promise! I was just wondering if maybe Castel would accept a different magical item in exchange for Ez." From his bag Callum withdrew the Key of Aaravos and set it in his lap, and Rayla's hard features soon softened significantly.

"Callum, are you sure?"

"If it'll get Ez back, absolutely."

"There is no time to waste then. I will take you to him and we can-" Corvus' voice abruptly broke off and he raised his hand to signal for silence. Both Rayla's and Anora's ears also picked up what had caught his attention: the murmuring of wind despite the air being completely still. Sliding his kaginawa off of his belt, Corvus slowly tilted his head from side to side, listening carefully; then in an instant, he whirled around and lashed out with the weapon, slicing the tops off of several bushes before the blade at the end of the chain sunk into a tree trunk with a thud. The whispering echoed on somewhere nearby, but the surrounding foliage remained completely motionless and devoid of any signs of life. Perhaps their frayed nerves were playing tricks on them; perhaps there was truly nothing there after all.

There was a glint of silver followed by Corvus giving a ghastly howl, his knees hitting the dirt and a throwing knife's hilt protruding from the back of one of his thighs. Though she didn't see it, Rayla heard the whistling of a second knife as it sliced through the air, and she swung her own blade just in time to deflect the projectile from embedding itself in the tracker's neck.

"Everybody circle up around Corvus! Now!"

Standing shoulder to shoulder with their backs to their wounded comrade, Rayla, Callum, Maddie, and Anora watched and listened, muscles twitching in anticipation of the next attack.

"There!" Glimpsing a deep purple flicker in her right peripheral, Maddie took aim and shot off an arrow, but to her amazement, the projectile passed harmlessly through the smoky body of the humanoid creature, falling instead among the shrubs and tree roots behind it. "Um, guys? We have a problem."

A dark shadow blanketed Anora, prompting her to raise her staff just in time as another ghostly figure sprang from the shadows and swung at her with its naginata. Their weapons colliding with the grating shriek of metal against metal, they struggled against one another before Anora surged forward with all of her weight, shoving her attacker back. Meanwhile, the two other dark assailants darted into the light, heading straight for Callum and Rayla who countered their attack with a lightning spell and a few slashes of the latter's blades.

"It's those smoke creatures again! Which dark mage did we tick off this time?!" Rayla lamented, swinging at one of the shadows when it took a few steps too close. "Callum, use your wind spell!"

Callum was already halfway done drawing the Aspiro rune, but when he uttered the incantation which transformed his exhaled breath into a mighty gale, the two closest elves darted to either side out of the spell's path.

"They're too fast! I need something to keep them in place long enough for me to hit them!"

"Leave that to me. Cover your ears!" Anora remarked before clamping her hands over the sides of Callum's head. Once the others had heeded her warning, she let loose her ear-piercing shriek, sending all the nearby wildlife fleeing in terror. The smoky apparitions recoiled at the sound, and in their moment of vulnerability, Callum's traced the rune out once more while uttering the incantation, the gust from his lips swiftly sweeping the four figures out of sight.

"We need to move. Even if those things don't come back, their master could send someone or something else after us." Kneeling beside Corvus, Rayla looped one of his arms over her shoulder while Anora took the other. "Maddie, you carry Zym and scout up ahead. Callum, you guard the rear."

"I'm just going to slow you down like this. Leave me here and go help the king; I'll be fine." Corvus grunted, doing his best to hide his pain behind a brave mask.

"We are not leaving you here. There's a town nearby; we can set you up along its outskirts near the main road so you can flag down a ride into town and get some help." Anora refuted as their little group started to limp along.

"But King Ezran-"

"We will free the king from Castel. I give you my word."

As they walked, Rayla stayed completely silent, and although she was typically the quiet type, the way her head hung low between her shoulders and her eyes stared uncomprehendingly at the ground told Callum that something was on her mind as he followed along behind her.

"Rayla, you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine." Rayla was not fine, but Callum had enough to worry about at the moment. Retreating back into her thoughts, images of those four figures played over and over in her mind, taunting her as she struggled to make sense of what they were. Unlike the wolves Claudia had sent after them, these beings had been more humanlike. They hadn't fought like humans though, and the longer she mulled over what she had seen, the more familiar the ghostly creatures started to seem. However, her mind refused to delve any deeper for one reason or another, and perhaps that was best for the time being.


End file.
